Change requires effort … and boy, am I feeling it!

via – Lydia M, AVAC’s AbsoluteFIT blogger

In the spirit of continuing to push myself — an AbsoluteFIT value if ever there was one — I’ve done a couple of things lately that are definitely on the edge of my abilities, and here is how they’ve played out:

1. The 20-lb. rows: Yesterday in Marie’s Strength and Endurance session, I felt good, and so I leveled up on basically everything at once: I did goblet bicep curls with the 20-pound kettlebell, I did the balanced plank thing A) at full arm extension and B) with the alternating leg lifts (both are increased-difficulty modifications), and I did the one-arm rows with the 20-lb. kettlebell. I was thrilled that I could do these things, and I am still proud of how hard I’ve worked to get to that level … but yeah, ok, I am sore Unnnnngh my lats right now … good thing this is a rest day!
2. Ashley and her Sprint 8: My mysterious recurring foot injury cropped back up over the weekend, so on Monday I decided to “take it easy” and get a cardio workout on the new bikes on the cardio floor. AbsoluteFIT trainer Ashley had mentioned the “Sprint 8” program on those bikes, so I tried it — a warmup, a cool down, and in between, eight segments of 30-second all-out sprint followed by 1:30 “active recovery” segments (pedaling more slowly and at lower resistance). Holy … schnikes. That was some workout! I’ve never gotten that much out of the bike — the entire rest of the day, I was conscious of the effort I’d put in (sore calves, raw lungs, etc.) I would most definitely recommend this as a quick (~20-min.), effective burst of high-intensity exercise. Ask Ashley for more details!

What have you tried lately? Share it here

—Lydia M.